


Wedding Time

by Fanbabs



Series: The Road Less Traveled [3]
Category: Shameless (US)
Genre: Domestic, Fluff and Angst, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-29
Updated: 2018-09-01
Packaged: 2019-05-15 15:32:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 17,951
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14793173
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fanbabs/pseuds/Fanbabs
Summary: This work is set a couple of months after 'Maty', which is also part of this series and deals with the upcoming wedding of Mickey and Ian.





	1. Friday

**Author's Note:**

> I needed to go to my happy place for a while after the depressing last chapter of 'Home is where the heart is'. It is getting better though soon and I'll write the next chapter of it in the next couple of days! 
> 
> Hope you enjoy this one for now :)
> 
> Thank you for reading!

“No way!”  
“Come on!”  
“No fuckin’ way!”  
“Jesus, it won’t be that bad!”  
“No way we’re doin’ that, Ian!”  
“Jesus, Mick! It’s only one week!”  
“Na ah!”  
“It’s romantic!”  
“Fuck off!”  
“Could you stop being so dramatic? It’s just sex!”

Mickey scowled at Ian. They were standing in their kitchen deciding the last things about their wedding. “It’s a fuckin’ week! You’ll get over it! We’ve gone longer than that without sex!”, Ian argued with a shit eating grin. “And what good will it do to us? Huh? Why would we do such a thing?”, Mickey spat back with raised eyebrows. Ian laughed. Seeing Mickey that outraged about going a week without sex before their wedding was hilarious. “You act like I want to saw off your foot! As I said: It’s romantic! It’s gonna make our wedding night that much more special!”

Mickey shook his head eagerly. “The only thing special about our wedding night will be that we won’t last long enough to really enjoy it! It’s a stupid idea!” Ian rolled his eyes. “Fine! Five days!”, he suggested but Mickey just frowned at him. “Fuck no!”, he exclaimed, “The week’s gonna be stressful enough as it is and you don’t even allow me to work! How else am I goin’ to blow off some steam?” Ian stepped closer to him. “You could just work out like normal people. Not beat someone to shit in a ring! I want pretty pictures of your pretty face, without blood, stitches and bruises… One day! Last offer!”, he said grinning and gently touched Mickey’s cheek. 

Mickey sighed. “Fine… whatever kick you’ll get out of it!” Ian smiled a little wider and kissed his fiancé. Just a little more than a week and they would finally be married. Happily ever after and all that. Ian still couldn’t believe how lucky he was. The past two years had been the happiest he had ever been and he felt like it could only get better. There was nothing that could break them apart anymore. 

“Johnny and Cat got your Bachelor’s party figured out yet?”, Ian asked curiously when they pulled apart. Mickey snorted. “You can barely call it a Bachelor’s party… everything fun is missing except for booze and weed!” Ian laughed again, running a hand through Mickey’s hair. “Not like you wanted it any different!”, he replied kissing him again. “Hey, I would have been fine without it all! Without the fuckin’ suit and party and all that shit. Just us two going to city hall and seal the deal!” He grabbed Ian by his hips and pulled him closer. “With a great party in our bed afterwards, followed by a fuckin’ honeymoon in fuckin’ Margaritaville!” Mickey grinned when he pressed his lips on Ian’s again.

“I thought you hated Tequila?”, Ian asked smirking. Mickey shrugged. “Doesn’t matter… honeymoon is postponed anyway until my fuckin’ parole’s over.” He scratched the back of his head thoughtfully. “Fuckin’ parole!”, he mumbled. Ian laid a hand on the side of his neck. “We don’t have to postpone it for long… four months tops! And then you’re a free man and we can go wherever we want!”, Ian smiled encouragingly. “Yeah and where is ‘wherever we want’?”, Mickey asked returning the smile. 

“I assume you don’t wanna spend our honeymoon in Mexico?”, Ian responded cheekily. “No way in hell I’m goin’ back there!”, Mickey replied firmly. He rubbed his bottom lip with his thumb and grinned at Ian naughtily. “Really would like to see your naked ass on the beach though!” Ian chuckled at that and took Mickey’s hand. “Why wait?”, he laughed and dragged him towards the bedroom.

\- - - - - - 

They got woken up a little later by someone that kept ringing the doorbell. Annoyed Mickey walked towards the door in his underwear, while Ian put on some clothes. He looked through the peephole cautiously. It was Mandy, looking frantically around herself and ringing the doorbell again. He opened the door and she quickly slipped inside. “The fuck do you want here?”, he asked irritated, closing the door behind her again. Mandy’s eyes were opened wide and she still looked around as if someone was behind her. Her big belly was stretching her thin t-shirt and she carefully put her hands around the big bulge. 

Mickey didn’t know much about babies or pregnancies or the female anatomy in general but he was quite certain that Mandy had taken something again and that sure as hell was not good for the baby. “Are you high?”, he asked taking a step in her direction. She looked down on the floor and tears started spilling from her eyes. “I… I didn’t mean to… “, she stuttered under tears. Ian suddenly appeared behind her fully dressed. “What’s goin’ on?”, he asked confused, gently stroking Mandy’s back. 

Mickey sighed. “Fuckin’ mother of the year here is on drugs again!”, he said and walked back to the bedroom to get dressed. Mandy still stood in the hallway crying and Ian navigated her to the couch. He offered her a tissue and she thankfully took it, wiping away her tears and her run down mascara. Her pupils were the size of her iris. It reminded Ian of the day she came back to Chicago a couple of months ago.

“I don’t know I felt paranoid on the streets that he could be behind me!”, she sobbed, wiping away strands of lose hair in her face. Ian frowned at her. “Who?”, he asked cautiously. She looked at him as if he was stupid. “Terry of course!”, she replied angrily. Ian leaned back a little. They had buried Terry not so long ago. What the hell was she talking about? “Mandy… Terry’s dead! You know that, right?”, he said carefully. She stared at him for a second before snorting. “Course I know that!”, she whispered. 

Mickey came back to the living room, sitting next to Ian. “Bitch, you need to handle your life!”, he said still irritated. She scowled at him. “What the fuck do you know about my life?”, she exclaimed and flinched, as if she was startled by her own voice. “I mean the fuckin’ drugs! This ain’t the first time you’re doin’ that shit! You need to get sober, like... now! You’re havin’ a baby soon! You’re supposed to be responsible!”

Ian laid a hand on Mickey’s forearm to stop him because Mandy had started to sob afresh. “I know, I know!”, she whined, burying her face in her hands. Ian stroked her back again. “Do you want us to get you some help?”, he asked carefully. She slapped his hand away. “Don’t be fuckin’ ridiculous! I can handle that shit on my own!”, she snapped at him. Ian pulled back a bit before saying: “You literally ran away because you thought Terry was after you!”, he said calmly. 

Mickey scowled at her. “Terry? What the fuck?” She shook her head. “You fuckin’ pricks are supposed to be understanding you know that?”, she exclaimed, “Not make fun of me! Besides popping pills is not that dangerous if you do it every once in a while! I’ve friends who’ve done it and their babies are fine!” She looked at them firmly before looking behind them. Looked back at them and looked behind them again. “What now?”, Mickey sighed and looked behind them himself. There was nothing there. 

“Mandy, I really think you should stop with whatever you’re taking until the baby’s born!”, Ian said concernedly. “You know what?”, she said furiously while standing up, “Fuck you two! You used to understand that shit but now you’re just two boring ass-eating douchebags looking down on me and I don’t need that fuckin’ shit! Fuck off!” She stormed off and was out the door.

Mickey sighed, running a hand over his face. “What the fuck?!”, he moaned confused. Ian shook his head. “This is not good, Mick!”, he said, looking at him, “This is really bad! You know what these drugs can do to an unborn? She needs to stop!” Mickey shrugged. “Damn right, but what are we supposed to do? We can’t lock her away or anythin’!”, he replied. “We have to stop her somehow…“, Ian said thoughtfully, “You think she took somethin’ on a regular basis?” Mickey shrugged again. “No fuckin’ clue! Hopefully not!”

“Fuck!”, Ian exclaimed and stood up, “We have to do something, Mick! She’s not only endangering her child but herself as well! I mean, she fuckin’ saw Terry and thought he was real!” Mickey scratched the back of his head uncomfortably. “We can’t do shit! She’s an adult and she won’t listen! You saw her!”, he replied, “And even if we can keep her from taking drugs until the baby’s born, do you really think she’ll just sober up? Just like that and stick around? Be a responsible parent and all that?” 

Ian sighed irritated. “This is so messed up!” He gazed into space, lost in thought. “We could talk to her tomorrow, when she’s sober… “, Mickey suggested but Ian didn’t respond, he just kept staring, “Earth to Ian, are you with me?” Mickey snapped a finger in front of his face and that got back his attention. He looked at Mickey with wide eyes. “I know what we’ll do!”, he said firmly, “Where’s my phone?”


	2. Saturday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An unexpected stressful day for Mickey and Ian 6 days before their wedding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter! I thought this was my happy place but I just end up being dramatic everywhere I go... the following chapters will be fluffier I swear!
> 
> In the meantime enjoy reading! :)

Mickey’s alarm clock went off way to early this morning. He barely had gotten any sleep after searching for Mandy the whole fucking evening. To top it all Svetlana had fallen sick and he had had to pick up Yevgeny, so she could have some rest. Six fucking days before he was getting married. He turned the alarm off and cuddled up to Ian again. Just a few more minutes of sleep couldn’t hurt. 

Suddenly a small finger nudged his arm. “Dad?”, his son whispered. He tried to ignore him for a second but resigned after Yevgeny nudged his arm again. He sighed and turned around to him. “What?”, he asked quietly, hoping not to wake Ian up. Yevgeny had tears in his eyes and he quickly sat up in panic. “What’s goin’ on?”, he asked hastily. “I had a nightmare!”, his son replied and tears started to spill again from his eyes. 

Relieved, Mickey fell back in his pillow. “Alright, get in here!”, he invited him and held out an arm. Yevgeny quickly crawled between him and Ian and made himself comfortable by leaning his head on his dad’s chest. “Your grandma awake, yet?”, he asked quietly, stroking his son’s back. Ian had called Anastasia yesterday, after that strange visit from his drugged up sister. He had thought that her mother might get her back on track and that hadn’t even been a bad idea but they had to find her first for that.

Yevgeny shook his head slowly. “Wanna tell me about your nightmare?”, Mickey whispered and Yevgeny shook his head again. Mickey nodded and softly caressed his son’s hair, placing a kiss on top of his head. Ian began to shuffle next to them and lifted his head sleepily. When he saw father and son laying side by side a smile spread across his face. “My favorite two people in the world!”, he mumbled and placed a kiss first on Yevgeny’s head and then on Mickey’s before standing up and moving to the bathroom.

Mickey closed his eyes again, desperately trying to fall asleep. It was still too fucking early and the day would be stressful enough. First they had to bring Yevgeny to the Gallagher house, then they had to find Mandy, then they had to decide about food for the party at the Alibi after their wedding and then they had to pick up their suits for the wedding. Tomorrow a couple of friends and family would come over for a few drinks and last arrangements. And the days after would be spent with carrying out these last arrangements. He would be so relieved when Friday finally arrived and they could get it over with. Not that he didn’t want to be married to fucking Ian Gallagher but it was all just fucking exhausting.

Ian returned from the bathroom. “Anyone up for pancakes?”, he asked cheerily, suddenly wide awake. Because of fucking course he was in a good mood on that shitty day. Yevgeny jumped up excitedly from Mickey’s chest, his nightmare completely forgotten. Mickey tried to lay still, stubbornly. He didn’t want this day to start already. It would be long and he knew it. Yevgeny seemed to have other plans since he started pulling on his hand. Apparently there was no rest for the wicked. Grumpily he let himself be pulled up and slurred to the bathroom. A shower would do him some good.

\- - - - - - 

After they had left Yevgeny with Fiona Mickey, Ian and Anastasia made their way back to Mandy’s apartment in the hope that she was at home now. Of course nobody answered when Mickey knocked, so they let themselves in with the spare key Ian had gotten from Mandy in case of emergency. Mickey quickly walked through the empty apartment while the other two searched for something that might give them a hint where his sister could be.

Ian found some old flyers on a pile of unopened mail and pizza cartons but nothing that could indicate where Mandy was. Anastasia sat down on the couch tiredly. She seemed worn out by worry and lack of sleep. “Why would she do that?”, she sighed, “Why would she endanger her child like that?” Ian sat next to her, running a hand through his red hair. “She’s always been a little headstrong… never seen her so reckless before, though.”, he said thoughtfully. “You’ve been friends with her before you and Mickey…, right?”, she asked and Ian nodded, “So you experimented with drugs?” He tilted his a head a little and smiled shyly at her. “Not really something I wanna discuss with my future mother in law!”, he said sheepishly. She laughed. “Nothing to be ashamed of… I had to lie, if I claimed I hadn’t tried out one or the other drug. I just wanted to know if you can think of a spot or something you used to go to… or a dealer you may know?”

Ian scratched his forehead, thinking. “You know… I hate to break it to you but our go to guy used to live at the Milkovich house and the spot we usually got high at was the Milkovich house, so… “, he chuckled half-heartedly. “Found something!”, Mickey yelled from Mandy’s bedroom and they quickly ran over to him. Mickey sat on his sister’s bed holding up a little note with a number scribbled on. He was already busy typing it in his phone, when Ian got closer to see what name was written above the number. ‘Therapist’. Ian frowned. “What kind of therapist is she seeing?”, he asked confused. “Don’t think it’s a real therapist!”, Mickey laughed darkly and held the phone to his ear.

It rang a few times before somebody picked up. “Whaddaya need?”, a chesty voice on the other end asked. “I need you to fuckin’ tell me where my fuckin’ sister is!”, Mickey barked in the phone. Silence on the other end. “You heard me?”, Mickey asked menacingly, “Her name’s Mandy and she’s fuckin’ pregnant!” The guy on the other end sighed. “Listen man, I tried to talk her out of it but you know how those junkies are…”, the man tried to defend himself. “Where the fuck is she?”, Mickey asked again. Although he basically had no leverage since he only talked to the guy on the phone, it was kind of funny how easily the man buckled. “Maybe she’s at that party at the dorm on North Side… I… I think she said she wanted to go there!” Mickey ran a hand over his face. What the fuck was she doing? He quickly noted down the address of the dorm and hung up.

They made their way to the North Side. The party wasn’t really hard to find since the way was plastered with beer cups and drunken people, sleeping on the floor. They entered the building and Mickey just grabbed the first guy that ran into them and pinned him against the wall. “You seen a pregnant woman?”, he asked threateningly. The guy looked at him arrogantly. “Take your hands off me or I’ll have my father sue your ass!”, he replied not the least bit afraid. “Answer my fuckin’ question or I’ll fuckin’ rip your tongue out and wipe the floor with it! Daddy’s not here to help you now!”, Mickey yelled at him. The guy seemed to weigh the odds if he should chance it. Luckily for him he decided against it. “Alright, fine… there was a pregnant woman partying like a lunatic a couple of hours ago! Somebody called the ambulance when she started bleeding all over the place it was disgusting!” Mickey let go of the guy’s shirt and hit the wall beside him. 

“Get the fuck outta here!”, he yelled at him and the man quickly ran away. Mickey turned around to his mother and fiancé again. “You heard it!”, he said a little calmer. Fear spread in his eyes and he felt like his knees were about to give in. Not like he cared much for this baby but his fucking sister sure did, even though she did everything wrong at the moment, he knew she would regret that one day. Ian pulled out his phone. “I’m calling Sue! Maybe she can tell us where Mandy was brought!” Mickey nodded and they went back to their car.

 

After Sue had checked the computer, she directed them to the Chicago Northwestern Memorial hospital. When they entered the hospital, a receptionist told them that Mandy was already in labor and on the OB-Gyn floor. They rushed their way up but before they entered the labor room Mandy was supposedly in, Mickey stopped in his tracks. Ian looked back at him. “Come on! What are you waiting for?!”, he asked impatiently. “I… I can’t go in there!”, Mickey stuttered, suddenly well aware of what was going to happen in the room. His mother just kept on walking, ignoring her son’s doubts. Ian sighed, rolling his eyes and followed Anastasia.

Mickey sat down on a chair in front of the labor room and took a deep breath. It wasn’t so much the fact that he was afraid to see blood or anything but that he would see his sister naked and exposed on a fucking chair spreading her legs and screaming. He could live without the image of that burned into his head. It didn’t take long until Ian appeared again. His skin tone was even paler than before, if that was even possible and he looked like he was about to throw up. Mickey navigated him to the chair next to him.

“That bad?”, he asked worriedly. “It’s a fuckin’ bloodbath!”, Ian replied catching his breath, “I’ve seen fuckin’ ripped off limbs and shit but that… no fuckin’ way! Thank god we’re gay! I don’t know how either of us would do it!” Mickey chuckled and grabbed Ian’s hand, running a thumb over it comfortingly. He soon calmed down and his skin color returned to normal pale. 

After a few minutes Mickey felt his phone buzzing in his pocket. He pulled it out and looked who it was. John. Shit! It was already four. They were supposed to be at the Alibi half an hour ago! He looked at Ian who seemed to remember as well and picked up the phone. “Yeah?”, he answered. “Mickey? Where the fuck are you?”, John asked, “Everyone’s waitin’!” Mickey sighed. “Yeah, I know sorry, man! We forgot the time! My sister is having her baby and we are…”, he replied before John interrupted him: “Mandy is having her baby? Seriously?” 

Johns voice turned from pissed to absolutely excited. “Yeah.” He heard cheering in the background and he had to hold the phone away from his ear, as half of the Alibi was screaming in John’s phone. “Alright man! Just let me know when you can get here, okay?”, John said happily. The motherfucker was probably smiling like an idiot right now. “Yeah, yeah, I’ll text you!”, Mickey answered and hung up.

He looked at Ian again who had put on a shit eating grin. “It is actually quite exciting!”, he smiled and squeezed Mickey’s hand, “We’re goin’ to be uncles!” Mickey laughed and leaned his head back. “Sure, we’ll probably be fathers soon, too, if Mandy doesn’t get her shit together!”, he joked and looked up at the pattern of the ceiling. Ian returned the laugh. “You’d do that?”, he asked, eying Mickey thoroughly, “Raise Mandy’s baby?” Mickey shrugged in response. “It would probably be better for my mom to raise the child… but before I let it go to fuckin’ foster care, of course I’d take it in!”, he replied and earned himself a broad smile from Ian. “You’d be a great dad!”, Ian said looking at him fondly. “Just shut up!”, Mickey grunted but had to return the smile, “Don’t start with that whole dad shit again!”

Suddenly the door to the labor room opened again and Anastasia appeared with a concerned look on her face. They both jumped up from their seats and walked towards her. “What’s goin’ on?”, Mickey asked worriedly. “I don’t know… They said they had to do a C-section!”, she answered. Mickey swallowed. He didn’t know what that all meant but it sure as hell wasn’t good. “Did they say anything else?”, Ian asked her and she shook her head. He gazed at Mickey. “We should probably call Johnny again and tell him to just pick something to eat… maybe I can ask Lip to pick up our suits?”, he suggested. 

Anastasia looked at them both and shook her head again. “If there’s somewhere you need to be you can go! I’ll stay here and keep you updated! Nothing we can do right now anyway!”, she said and sighed. Mickey looked back at Ian and he nodded. “Better than sittin’ on our asses!”, he replied and pulled his mum into a hug. “Thanks!”, he mumbled in her ear, “Call us when you know something!” Anastasia smiled at them both and squeezed Ian’s hand tightly before they left. Doing all this wedding stuff might seem void in this situation but it was a welcome distraction. 

\- - - - - - 

Mandy gave birth to a baby girl, eight weeks prematurely. At first glance, she looked healthy but of course no proper statement could be made about possible brain damage at the moment. At least that was what Anastasia had told Mickey and Ian on the phone. 

When the two entered the room, Mandy lay in a hospital bed and Anastasia was sitting beside her, holding her hand. They both looked tired and drained. Mandy turned around when she heard them come in but quickly looked away again, closing her eyes. Ian rushed to her bedside and grabbed her hand. “How are you feelin’?”, he asked worriedly. She didn’t answer at first, only thick tears were spilling from her eyes. 

Mickey stood behind Ian unable to move. He didn’t feel comfortable in this situation. His sister was usually the strong one with her big mouth but right now she looked anything but strong. She was incredibly vulnerable and broken. She had hit rock bottom and Mickey knew exactly what that felt like. Not too long ago he had been there himself and it hadn’t been pleasant.

“I fucked up so bad!”, Mandy whispered under tears, “I fucked up so so bad! I almost killed her!” Ian stroke her arm comfortingly. “You didn’t kill her!”, Anastasia said, smiling encouragingly, “She is very much alive! And strong! She’s a little fighter, just like you!” Mandy just continued to sob. “Where is she now?”, Mickey asked, looking at his mother. “Down the hall at the newborn’s unit, in an incubator… She’ll have to stay for a couple of weeks until she’s bigger.” Mickey nodded in response, still avoiding to look at his sister. 

“I’ll never ever do that shit again! I swear!”, Mandy gasped firmly, staring at Mickey as if she had to convince him. He nodded again, turning around and walked towards the door. “Where’re you goin’?”, Ian asked confused. “Wanna see the little fucker of course!”, Mickey replied, impatiently. Ian looked back at Mandy and Anastasia before he followed Mickey out the door and down to the newborn’s unit. 

“How do we know which one’s Mandy’s? They all look the same!”, Mickey complained, looking through the big window at all the little newborn babies. “We could either go in and check every name or… what normal people would do is just ask a nurse!”, Ian said sarcastically and Mickey flipped him off for that. They quickly found a nurse that led them to the incubator Mandy’s baby was lying in. She explained all the medical gibberish Anastasia had already summarized for them on the phone and then kept standing next to them as if she didn’t trust them alone with the newborn.

Mickey eyed the baby warily. “Is she supposed to be that small?”, he asked the nurse. The nurse nodded. “It’s normal considering she was eight weeks premature!” They looked back at the little one inside the incubator. She was hooked up to different tubes and cables. “You sure she’s okay?”, he asked again, with raised eyebrows. The nurse smiled at him friendly. “Yes, despite the circumstances, she is okay as far as we can say right now.”, she replied, before her beeper went off and she excused herself. 

“She’s so tiny!”, Ian mumbled, touching the glass. A smile playing on his lips. “Just look at her! Isn’t she adorable?” Mickey shrugged. He never thought of babies as adorable. They were usually just loud and stank. How people could think they were cute was lost to him. Although, he had to admit that the little one had something on her, he couldn’t explain. She seemed so fragile, lying in there, hooked to all these machines that made him feel all protective of her. He sure hoped Mandy meant what she had sworn. He desperately hoped that for the sake of the little girl in front of him.


	3. Sunday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ian and Mickey are having some close friends and family over to discuss the wedding and other important topics.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now this I call a happy place! I had a lot of fun writing this chapter!
> 
> The discussion about intimacy and love is something I actually had with my roommates once. I thought it was pretty funny so ya'll enjoy!
> 
> As always thank you for reading and commenting! I appreciate it all very much :)

“Yevi!”, Cat exclaimed happily, opening her arms for the little boy to jump right into a hug. Yevgeny squealed of joy and Ian closed the door behind her. “You alone?”, he asked surprised and she nodded. “Yeah Johnny’s been out all night… think he’s started seeing someone. Might have to ask your hubby about it!”, she laughed and Yevgeny pulled her to the living room. “I doubt they talk about those things…”, Ian scratched his head thoughtfully. 

“Talk about what?”, Mickey asked, appearing in the hallway. Cat started to laugh and pulled him into a tight hug. “My brother dating someone!”, she finished the sentence, when they pulled apart. Mickey raised his eyebrows. “I dunno what you’re talkin’ about!”, he replied and chuckled suspiciously. “See! They talk about that shit and leave me out in the cold!”, Cat complained to Ian who just shrugged. “Hey I can have a secret or two with my best man! Besides, you’ll know soon enough, when they start bangin’ the fuckin’ walls in!”, Mickey chuckled walking over to the kitchen, offering her a beer.

“You told me when you and Ian started dating!”, she pointed out and took the beer from him. “Yeah, because how the fuck can you hide that huge redhead?!”, he asked in return, gesturing towards Ian and they started laughing. “Cat! I wanna show you somethin’!”, Yevgeny exclaimed and she walked over, looking at his favorite toys. Mickey opened himself a beer and took a gulp before the doorbell rang again. This time it was Lip, Fiona and… John! 

“Hey, hey! We are here!”, Lip greeted the room, followed by a giggling Fiona and a shy smiling John. Ian looked at them confused, while Cat stood up to greet them all. When she came to her brother, she slapped his arm and grinned at Fiona. “Wanna introduce me to your girlfriend?”, she demanded more than she asked. Fiona just stared back at her insecurely. John’s head turned red. “Stop it! She’s not my… we haven’t even talked about it yet!”, he shot back in a childish way that made Cat crack up. 

Ian walked over to Mickey who was grinning to himself, looking at the scene played out in front of him. “You knew Johnny dated my sister?”, Ian whispered quietly so only he could hear him. Mickey shrugged. “Yeah, I guess.” “And you didn’t think you could tell me that?”, Ian asked. Mickey frowned at him. “He asked me not to… What’s the fuckin’ big deal?” Ian snorted. “He’s a heroin addict… ringin’ a bell?” Mickey rolled his eyes. “So? She’s gotta a thing for heroin addicts… not like he’s even usin’!”, he replied defensively. “That’s not the fuckin’ issue!”, Ian shot back. “Jesus, Ian, then what the fuck is the issue? Johnny’s not a bad guy! Your sister had way worse! Let them fuckin’ figure out what they wanna fuckin’ be!”, Mickey responded irritated. 

By now their quiet whispers had caught the attention of the rest of the group. “Hey quit fightin’!”, Cat interrupted them. “You’re supposed to be happy! You’re gettin’ married on Friday!” They turned around to face her. “Good boys! Now kiss and make up!”, she continued for which she got flipped off by the couple. “Kiss and make up!”, Yevgeny parroted her and came running towards her again. Cat laughed and high-fived him. “You can practice! For Friday, you know!”, she suggested smiling.

“I actually don’t remember ever seeing them kiss.”, John pointed out, scratching his forehead. “I have!”, Cat replied grinning, “At that gay club! You were there, too. They’re actually really sweet and tender with each other!” Lip started laughing now. “I don’t think I ever heard the words ‘sweet and tender’ in the same sentence with Mickey!”, he chuckled and Mickey flipped him off again. “Oh now you’re just being mean, my dear Philip!”, Cat said seriously, “Our Mickey is a real sweetheart! Right, Mick?” All eyes were on Mickey now. He raised his eyebrows in annoyance. “I’m not nearly fuckin’ hammered enough to have this conversation!”, he snorted and grabbed his son under one arm as if he was a plank. 

“Bedtime, little man!” The kid protested but couldn’t really wiggle out of his father’s arm. Mickey put him on a chair, facing the other people in the room. “Say goodnight to these lovely people!”, he told him and Yevgeny smiled at the group widely. “Good night lovely people!”, he parroted him chuckling. “Good night Yevi!”, Cat said fondly and she and Fiona gave him a big hug before Ian appeared and kissed his head. After everyone had said goodnight to Yevgeny, Mickey grabbed him in the same fashion as before and walked towards the bedroom, the giggling boy under his arm.

“What’s the fuckin’ problem anyway with you two kissing in public… or I mean even in front of us?”, Fiona asked her little brother, while taking a seat at the dining table. Ian walked over to the table, bringing beer for her and John and a cup of coffee for Lip. “Dunno… I don’t have a problem! Guess it’s just an old habit!”, Ian shrugged and sat down with the rest. “So it is a Mickey problem!”, Lip remarked, sipping on his coffee. “I just never really cared about that… he’s not comfortable with public affection and I’m fine with it! No biggie!”, Ian replied, when Mickey suddenly reentered the room.

“Hey Mickey, why do you never kiss Ian in front of us?”, Cat asked curiously, well aware that she was annoying the fuck out of him. “Get a life, Cat!”, he replied dropping down next to Ian. “What’s your problem? Everybody does it!”, she continued to pester him. He rolled his eyes in response. “I don’t have a problem with it! I just don’t like you morons watching us!”

“But you do know, you gotta kiss him in front of everyone at town hall on Friday?”, she simply continued. “Says who?”, he asked in return. “Says the fuckin’ law!”, she shot back. Mickey scowled at her and looked over at Ian who smiled and nodded in agreement with Cat. Mickey just shook his head in surrender. “Fuckin’ whatever! You better make a picture then!” A broad smirk stretched across her face. “Oh, I will!”, she grinned.

“I totally get it man! Kissin’s just way to intimate for the public!”, John pitched in, earning a weird look from Fiona. “See! That’s why he’s my best man and not you!”, Mickey pointed out to her. Cat laughed again. “Yeah, right! So you only do it indoors with shut curtains or what? I’ve seen you fuckin’ kiss in public, Johnny! Don’t be a suck-up just because you gotta be best man!” John shook his head, taking a sip of his beer. “Not a suck-up! I just get why people chose not to do it publicly! I mean you don’t have sex in public either, so…”, he explained. 

“Okay so first of all, people do have sex in public! And second of all, what the fuck’s wrong with you two? You sound like kissing is as intimate as having sex and that’s just fuckin’ ridiculous!”, Cat made a point and Fiona toasted her beer to her. “I totally second that!”, she said, taking a sip. “Kissin’s way more intimate than sex!”, Mickey disagreed, “You can have sex with anyone but you sure as hell not wanna kiss just anyone!” John clinked his beer with his in agreement for which Fiona shook her head at him and he shrugged apologetically. 

“So you never kissed a one night stand?”, Lips asked disbelievingly. Mickey shook his head. “Nope!” Ian started to chuckle at his brother. “How can you even ask that? I told you it took me a year to convince him to kiss me after we had started fuckin’! And even then I had to push him!” “Ey, you didn’t have to push me! I wanted to!”, Mickey interrupted him. “Oh yeah? Then how come I had to start seeing someone else first, before you even considered it?” Mickey frowned at him. “To get your fuckin’ head straight from that creepy old man fetish you had back then!”, he shot back. “That doesn’t even make sense!”, Ian replied laughing. “Whatever! The fuckin’ point is you only kiss someone you love but you can fuck anybody for fun!”, Mickey responded, looking at Cat again. 

“Okay fine! I see your point! What about blowjobs though? That less intimate than kissing?”, she asked smirking. “Of fuckin’ course! That’s like the least intimate thing on the fuckin’ planet!”, Mickey replied taking another sip of his beer. Fiona shook her head at the two. “I don’t fuckin’ believe this!”, she sighed laughing, “Can you believe this?” She looked at Lip and the latter tilted his head. “I actually have to agree on this one with Mickey! Blowjobs really aren’t that intimate!” Mickey raised his beer triumphantly. “Thank you!” 

“Wait… you said you only kiss someone you love. Does that mean you’ve only loved my brother… like ever?”, Fiona asked doubtingly. Mickey shrugged again. “I don’t believe it! You seriously never loved anybody else?”, Fiona asked Mickey again. “No, why? Do I have to?”, he asked frowning. “Awww that’s so sweet!”, Cat said exaggeratively before turning to Lip, “See! I told you he’s a sweetheart!” Lip smirked and sipped on his coffee. “Still not buying it!”, he mumbled.

“What about you Ian? You’ve been awfully quiet!”, she said to the redhead and he immediately started to blush. “Yeah… I’m not gettin’ involved in this topic!”, he tried to wiggle himself out of the attention. “But you loved more than once, right?”, Fiona questioned him, “I mean you had other relationships!” Ian shrugged uncomfortably. “Yeah but are we talkin’ about love or just being in love ‘cause that’s two different things! I’ve been in love many times but I only ever loved once, so…” “That’s just the fuckin’ cheesiest thing I ever heard you say!”, Mickey interrupted him and they all started laughing. 

“You two are just so lovey-dovey! Thank god you’re gettin’ married!”, Cat sighed and toasted to them. “I just can’t believe that anyone just really loves once… I mean I’ve loved at least three times in my life…”, Fiona pointed out. “Me, too! But it’s science… Men tend to love only once or twice in their lifetime, while women… you know!”, Cat responded to her and they started to laugh again.

“How’s Mandy by the way?”, Lip changed the subject and both Ian and Mickey gave him a thankful glance. “Better…”, Mickey answered seriously. “What about the baby? How’d she look?”, Fiona asked concerned. “Really fuckin’ small!”, he answered her, “Barely the size of my hand… but the nurse said she’s as alright as she can be.” Fiona raised her eyebrows. “Jesus Christ… “, she sighed, “How could she do that? How could she be that irresponsible?”

Mickey suddenly tensed up. He was tired of people asking these questions. As if they were all doing so much better. “Not like we had good role models!”, he snorted and Fiona fell silent, staring down at her beer. Terry’s parenting skills were unspeakable and everybody at the table knew it, although not all of them had witnessed these skills first hand. “She made a mistake and she’ll deal with it and face the fuckin’ consequences! I’m sure no one at this table is in a position to point a finger!”, he snarled and the table had gone completely silent by now. 

“Wow Milkovich still kickin’ our asses to defend your sister? Although I’m quite happy you use more words now!”, Lip threw in to ease the tension. Ian put a hand on Mickey’s thigh and he took a deep breath. “I’d still kick your ass quite literally, if you came too close to her!”, he replied a little less pissed. “Don’t I know it!”, Lip chuckled and the table relaxed again. “Can she even take care of the baby?”, Lip asked again and Mickey shrugged. “Dunno… this mornin’ she said she’d stay with our mother for a while. Probably for the best!” 

“Isn’t it weird for you guys to suddenly have a mother that cares after having no one for so long? I mean how can you even trust her?”, Cat asked him surprised. Mickey shrugged again. “’Cause I wouldn’t be sittin’ here if it weren’t for her!”, he smirked. Cat looked at him quizzically. “She’s paid Sammi to drop the charges, so I could come back… She’s done more for us in the few months she’s back in our lives than Terry did in almost twenty years!” ‘And she paid someone to kill Terry!’, he added in his head.

Fiona gaped at him. “She paid that bitch?”, she asked disbelievingly. He nodded and stood up to get another round of beers from the fridge. “Un-fuckin’-believable!”, Fiona muttered shaking her head. “That’s fuckin’ generous!”, Cat remarked, “Still not holding a grudge or anything?” She eyed Mickey warily but the latter just shook his head and waved a hand. “Nah tired of it! She’s tryin’ and we’re tryin’, too! ‘S all good!” Cat raised her freshly opened beer to cheer him. 

“I vow my head to you, Sir! You’re a better man than me! I’d grudge the fuckin’ shit out of her!”, she chuckled and the table joined in with her. “Wait ‘til you meet her! You sure as hell can’t keep a fuckin’ grudge with her for long!”, Ian said smirking. “Oh, yeah? I bet you only say that because you’re her damn dream son-in-law!”, Cat laughed and Mickey clinked his beer with hers in agreement. Ian returned the laugh, his hand still on Mickey’s thigh.

“Okay now after we clarified these very important topics can we get back to the reason why you’re here in the first place?”, Ian uttered to focus the attention of the group again. Everyone sighed loudly. “And you thought that beer was for free!”, Mickey laughed again and they all joined in. “Let’s hear it! What do you need us to do?”, Lip asked after they all caught their breath and Ian began to explain.


	4. Monday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mickey doesn't remember what happened the night before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy reading :)

Mickey woke up the next day with a throbbing headache and heavy eyelids. Maybe he had had a beer too many last night. He vaguely remembered a discussion about why he didn’t kiss Ian in front of others and how Mandy was doing and then… blank. He was sure he had had fun last night and he also knew that he had laughed a lot but why the hell couldn’t he remember the rest of it? 

He rubbed his temples to ease the pain. His body still felt heavy but he managed to turn around to have a look at the clock on his nightstand. It was past ten already! He had overslept! He hadn’t brought Yevgeny to school and now Svetlana would kill him. Wait… didn’t Yevgeny sleep in their bed last night? He knew he had put him to bed here yesterday. Where the fuck was he now and for god’s sake where the fuck was Ian? 

He jumped out of bed in a hurry and into the living room. Yevgeny was nowhere to be found but Ian sat on the couch typing something and smiling at his phone. When he noticed Mickey standing there watching him in his underwear, he gave him a huge smile. “Yevgeny?”, Mickey asked panicky. “Brought him to school! Don’t worry!”, Ian replied and Mickey took a deep breath in relieve. Ian quickly stood up and walked towards him. He didn’t stop in front of Mickey but instead pressed him against the wall, kissing him hungrily. 

Mickey looked up at him surprised when he pulled back. “What was that for?”, he asked insecurely, a soft smile playing on his lips. Ian gently stroke his cheek and shrugged. “Nothing really… you’re just adorable! That’s all!”, he replied smirking. Mickey frowned at him. “What did you just call me?”, he asked as if he didn’t hear him the first time. Ian’s grin got even bigger before he started to laugh. “Shit, you don’t remember, right? Last night?”

“What don’t I remember?”, Mickey asked confused, suddenly terrified he had done something embarrassing. “After Cat started rolling joints she dared you to kiss me and you did… in front of everyone!” If happiness had a face, it would be Ian’s right now. “And…”, Oh god, there was and ‘and’, “you promised to do it more often now!” The redhead just beamed with joy at Mickey as if he had hung the stars. What the hell happened last night? Cat and her fucking weed!

Ian seemed to notice his insecurity and gently started stroking his shoulders. “It’s fine! You don’t have to! Don’t worry about it! It was a joke!”, he tried to sooth him. Mickey raised his eyebrows. “A joke that I promised or a joke that I have to kiss you more often in front of others?”, he asked hoarsely. Ian gave him a soft look. “The latter… You know I would never ask such a thing of you! … No matter how sweet it was!” Mickey rolled his eyes and flipped him off, walking back to the bedroom again.

“Oh come on, Mick!”, Ian laughed and followed him. Mickey grabbed his phone from the nightstand and unlocked it. There were a couple of unread messages but only one that stung out to him. A message from Cat, or rather a picture that showed him kissing Ian and smiling like an idiot while at it. He moaned loudly, ran a hand over his face and fell back on their bed, throwing his phone beside him. Ian crawled next to him and hovered over him. “It IS a cute picture!”, he remarked looking at Mickey’s phone. “Shut up, will ya?”, Mickey grunted and closed his eyes.

Ian chuckled but didn’t push further. He laid his head on his shoulder and drew little circles on Mickey’s chest with his hand. “Maybe you just shouldn’t mix beer and weed anymore! Makes you kinda silly and talkative… not that I don’t like that but Cat sure knows how she can get answers outta ya!”, Ian said thoughtfully. Mickey opened his eyes wide again. “What answers?”

Ian sat up, looking at him. “Nothing really… Just how much you love me!”, he smiled and Mickey just shook his head at him, frowning. “I’m kinda on the fence on what bugs me more: They makin’ a big fuckin’ deal out of it or you!”, he sighed for which Ian raised his eyebrows in question. “So it’s not a big fuckin’ deal to you?”, he asked surprised. “Whatever man…”, Mickey sighed.

Ian started poking his ribs because he knew exactly how ticklish he was there. “So it’s NOT a big fuckin’ deal to you?”, he repeated a little louder and Mickey twitched under his pokes. “I fuckin’ proposed to you and we’re gettin’ married! That’s like a million times cheesier than any kiss on camera or a damn love confession!”, he answered irritated. Ian chuckled. “So us gettin’ married is cheesy, huh?”, he asked slowly and Mickey nodded in response, “But you proposed… which can only mean you like these cheesy gestures?!” 

Mickey suddenly grabbed Ian and flung him around, so he was sitting on his waist now, pressing him into the mattress. He pinned his hands above him and looked deeply into his eyes, their faces only an inch apart. “You know what else I like?”, he asked defiantly. Ian smiled up at him, eager to find out. “For you to shut up!”, he finished and stood up from the bed, making his way to the bathroom to have a shower. Ian was left lying on their bed laughing. He picked up Mickey’s phone again and looked fondly at their picture. He set it as screensaver before walking to the bathroom himself. It was his turn to show his fiancé just how much he loved him. 

\- - - - - - 

“Dad?”  
“Son?”  
“You love Ian?”  
“Jesus, fuck! Not you, too!”  
“Mama said you do!”  
“Yeah, well Mama is right… as always.”  
“Do you marry Ian because he has money or because you love him?”

Mickey slipped a loud laugh. On the one hand because it was ridiculous to think Ian had more money than him. They were doing okay financially but it was not like they could afford a big house on North Side. On the other hand because he knew exactly where that question came from. 

“What’s so funny?”, Yevgeny asked confused and looked up to him from the passenger seat. “Did your mom tell you that people get married because of money?”, he asked with a chuckle. “No…”, he answered in his innocent child’s voice. “Than where did you get the idea?” Yevgeny shrugged and stared down at his shoes. “Some of the boys in my class said that my mom married because of money but she told me people marry because they love each other…”, he answered shyly. 

Mickey almost laughed again. He hadn’t kept count on how many times Svetlana had gotten married but he was sure that she had almost never married because of love. Maybe V… but he wasn’t sure. “So?”, Yevgeny asked impatiently. “So, what?”, Mickey returned. “Why do you marry Ian?”, his son repeated with the same impatience that made him so recognizably his son. 

There were probably a million reasons to answer this question but he settled for the obvious one since the other reasons were too complicated or too inappropriate to tell a nine year old. “The latter!”, he replied concisely. “Because you love him?”, Yevgeny checked and looked up at his dad again. “Yeah!”, Mickey nodded and his son looked straight ahead in driving direction again. 

“Dad?”, Yevgeny asked in the same way as before. Mickey sighed. They were there soon, then he could pester Ian. “Does Ian love you, too?”, he asked curiously. “I sure hope so!”, Mickey mumbled in response. “What?”, his son asked again. “How about you ask him that yourself? Annoy him for a while?”, Mickey replied irritated. “Will you kiss him then?”, Yevgeny continued. 

Mickey parked the car in front of the Gallagher house and turned it off without answering. They both got out of the car and walked up the stairs in silence. Mickey because he didn’t want to answer this question anymore and Yevgeny because he knew that he would annoy his dad if he asked again. 

Ian was bent over wedding stuff at the kitchen table when they entered. Fiona and Debbie were there to help him organizing. Ian looked up and smiled at the two. Mickey didn’t think twice when he approached Ian. He was tired of people yapping about him not kissing Ian. They could just all go fuck themselves. He gave Ian a quick kiss on the lips. Surprised, Ian kept staring at him for a moment before playing it casual. Yevgeny started to giggle behind him and Debbie and Fiona shared a look but Mickey ignored them. So what, he kissed the person he loved? Not a big fucking deal! Not to him at least! Not anymore!


	5. Tuesday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mickey sees someone from the past and pays a visit to his sister.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry for the delay but something came up and I had no time to write! I'm trying to upload the next chapter sooner!
> 
> Hope you enjoy the new chapter for now!
> 
> Thanks for reading :)

There were days and weeks in Mickey’s life where his past never even crossed his mind. Other days it felt like it had caught up to him and there was nothing he could do about it. It wrapped him up and he could hardly breath when that happened. It didn’t even take much, just a simple reminder how fucked up his life had been a few years back and it all went to shit. 

Tuesday was that kind of day. Or so it seemed. It wasn’t intentionally but on his way back from school, where he had dropped off Yevgeny, he drove by the old Milkovich house. It probably hadn’t even caught his attention if there weren’t two police cars parked in front of it. It was a common sight when he used to live there but now it just caught him off guard. He stopped the car and watched as several cops forced their way into the rundown house of his childhood.

Mickey hadn’t even known that anyone was still living there. Since his father had been murdered, he had just always assumed the house was empty. Most of his brothers were in prison and the rest of the family had their own shitty houses. So he continued to watch eagerly who the cops would drag out of there. A few minutes had passed and he started to believe that house was indeed empty until he suddenly heard screaming. 

Two cops appeared again, holding on tightly to a fat blond man in handcuffs. His shirt was all pulled up and revealed his big belly. The guy weirdly reminded him of Terry but maybe it was just because he had seen this scene so many times. Or was it? He tried to have closer look and then it hit him. It was Colin. He must have been released on parole. Of course, he had already done something stupid to get himself incarcerated again.

It was weird for Mickey to see his brother like that again. A rush of memories came back to him as he watched the cops throw Colin in the back of the police car. Much like his other brothers, Colin had never been a very reliable person or even really close to him. Nevertheless, Mickey had memories of Colin protecting him and Mandy from their abusive father that went from either telling them to hide at the right moment to distracting Terry, giving them enough time to run before bolting himself.

The police car drove off, leaving the street and Mickey behind. He took a couple of deep breaths before starting the car again. A last glance at the old Milkovich house and a promise to burn the Motherfucker down someday, and he drove off to to the hospital to visit Mandy. All the way to the hospital he had to think about Colin in the back of the fucking cop car. Even when he entered Mandy’s room it didn’t stop bothering him.

“Hey fuckface!”, Mandy pulled him from his thoughts as he sat down beside her bed. She seemed to get better everyday, measurable at the amount of names she called him. Irritated he looked up at her. She held her little girl tightly to her chest. The baby was still hooked to various tubes but you could tell that she had grown a little which was a very good sign. “What?”, he asked her confused. “You wanna hold your niece?”, she asked in return and smiled shyly at him. 

Mickey considered it for a moment but then the little girl looked so fragile and small in Mandy’s hands that he feared he could break her. “Nah… I’m good! You hold her!”, he replied with a wave of his hand. Mandy frowned at him. “’s up with you today? Shouldn’t you be happy or somethin’ ‘bout gettin’ hitched?”, she asked him, stroking the back of her baby girl. Mickey snorted. “I am fuckin’ happy! Shut the fuck up, bitch!” 

“Whatever you say, assface!”, Mandy sighed. Mickey rubbed his forehead in thought and looked at her and her daughter. “You decided on a name, yet?”, he asked to change the subject. She held up her baby and gazed at her smilingly. “I thought maybe Ally? Whatcha think?”, she answered still gazing at the tiny little human in her hands. “Ally? Is that even a name?”, he asked frowning. Mandy gave him a dirty look. “Course it is! Maybe short for Alana or somethin’…”

“So, you wanna call her Alana?”, Mickey asked, leaning forward. Mandy tilted her head and smiled again. “Is your name Alana?”, she asked the baby girl and made some faces to make her laugh. “Jesus, just name her already!”, he sighed, resting his head on his hand. “Your uncle is really fuckin’ grumpy today, isn’t he? Do we like that? No, we don’t!”, Mandy said while still looking at her girl and shaking her head. Mickey ran a hand over his face. His sister had a tendency to annoy the fuck out of him whenever she felt like he was in a bad mood.

“Just shut up, bitch!”, he mumbled annoyed. She laid the baby back in the incubator next to her bed after kissing her gently on the cheek. “You could just tell me already what’s bugging you! You had a fight with Ian? He’ll tell me eventually anyway…”, she asked, looking at him. Mickey rubbed his eyes and sighed again. “I saw Colin today!”, he answered truthfully and her eyes grew wide. “Colin? What the fuck? Is he out?”, she sputtered.

Mickey shook his head. “He was out… I saw him in front of our old house… in handcuffs, some cops hauled him in.”, he replied thoughtfully. Mandy looked at him disbelievingly. “Fucker’s never gonna learn!”, she said quietly. Mickey nodded silently, staring down at his hands. “You ever think about our childhood?”, she asked carefully. He shrugged. “Try not to…”, he answered without looking up. “Yeah, me too! But some days… You know it just all comes back to me like a fuckin’ nightmare!”, she gasped and began to sob a little, “God-damn-motherfuckin’-hormones!”

He grabbed one of her hands and squeezed it lightly. He had never done that before. This whole comforting people that had a hard time was completely new to him but Ian always did it, so he could do it, too. “It’s over… we have our own lives now! The nightmare’s over!”, he tried to calm her and she nodded in response, squeezing his hand back. “Can you… can you ask Johnny if he takes me to one of those NA meetings?”, she asked gingerly and her voice sounded so vulnerable that Mickey wanted to punch a wall.

“You wanna get clean for real?”, he asked in return. She nodded. “That’s the first step, right? Admit that you have a problem!”, she laughed, “Besides I don’t have the fuckin’ money to afford a fuckin’ Betty Ford clinic or anythin’!” He chuckled at that remark. “I’ll give him a call!”, he replied encouragingly and stood up. 

He leaned down to the baby girl and said: “Bye, Alana! Your mom’s a fuckin’ bitch!” , before he made his way out of the hospital room again. He had to get home to help Ian with the rest of the wedding stuff. It had been good talking to his sister. Even though there had not been much said, it was good to know that somebody felt like him sometimes.

\- - - - - - 

When Mickey arrived home, Ian was running hastily around the small apartment. “What took you so long? Where ya been?”, he asked exasperatedly. Mickey raised his eyebrows in confusion. There had been no indication that he had to be there sooner. “I was at the hospital… guess what? Mandy named her baby Alana!”, he tried to change the subject. Ian looked at him like he wanted to go for his jugular. “Are you fuckin’ kidding me?”, he exclaimed impatiently.

Mickey stared back at him, even more confused. What the fuck was wrong with him today? “You fuckin’ go to the damn hospital when we have so much fuckin’ shit to do?”, Ian continued furiously. Mickey scowled at him. “Calm the fuck down! I’m allowed to visit my sister in the damn hospital, if I want to!”, he replied just as loud. “Are you fuckin’ serious right now? Do you even wanna get married?”, Ian yelled and both men fell silent.

Mickey took a deep breath, reminding himself that Ian was probably just stressed out and didn’t mean it like that. “’Course I do!”, he responded a little calmer, “Could you stop yelling at me now and give me a fuckin’ break?” Ian still looked pretty mad. He made a few steps towards Mickey and continued to stare him in the eyes. “I asked: Do you even wanna get married?”, he stressed every word. Mickey couldn’t help but scowl at him in confusion. Whatever that was supposed to mean.

“And I said: Of course I fuckin’ do! What the hell’s your problem man?”, he couldn’t even finish the sentence when Ian pressed his lips on Mickey’s and pulled him in for a deep hungry kiss. Oh, that’s what it meant! It didn’t take long before they were undressed and ready to move to the bedroom, barely able to keep their hands to themselves.

After a couple of passionate minutes they both climaxed and collapsed on the bed together. Mickey stared at the ceiling, still breathing heavily from exhaustion. “And you wanted a week of no sex before our wedding!”, he gasped out of breath. Ian chuckled. “Never been so wrong in my life!”, he replied equally beat. They laid there in silence for a while.

“So you visited Mandy?”, Ian asked when his breathing had calmed down. Mickey nodded. “Yeah, felt like it!”, he answered, grabbing Ian’s hand and entangling their fingers. “You know, couple of years ago you’d have never done that!”, Ian smiled, turning his head to look at him fondly. “I saw Colin today on my way to the hospital…”, it burst out of Mickey. Ian frowned. “Your brother Colin?”, he asked again and Mickey nodded in response. “Yeah… got taken away by some cops… stupid dickhead, probably violated his parole again!”

“So… you wanna do something? Help him out? Or visit him?”, Ian continued to ask. Mickey sighed, rubbing his eyes. “Nah, there’s nothin’ I can do anyway… Fucker’s probably gone for good now! Don’t need that bullshit in my life anymore!” Ian leaned over to look his fiancé in the eyes. “You okay?”, he asked carefully. Mickey looked at him frowning. “Course I am! Whatever man! Not like I’m gonna start to sob and wish it was different! Can’t change my shitty family! Don’t want to either!”, he snapped at him.

Ian knew him well enough to know that Mickey only acted that defensive when something really bothered him but he also knew that he would never admit that to anyone. “Fine! If you say so!”, Ian just replied, earning a surprised look on Mickey’s face. He leaned in for another passionate kiss which quickly escalated into something more again. 

Later when they lay in bed staring at the ceiling again and relaxing from their vital activity, Mickey couldn’t help but smile. Two years ago a day like that would have stirred him up completely and torture him all day but it was different now. The nightmare was over, he thought. They had their own lives. The nightmare was finally over.


	6. Wednesday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yevgeny is having trouble at school

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Just a quick heads-up: I barely have time to write right now! I'm in the final stages of my degree and my thesis is taking up a lot of time! I'm trying to at least upload one or two chapters a week but I can't make any promises! If you don't hear from me for a while you know what's up! Just be patient :)
> 
> Enjoy the new chapter for now! And thank you all for the continued support! Every kudos and comment is appreciated :)

Mickey got up in a haste because he had overslept again and now he was late for bringing Yevgeny to school. Ian had been up for hours which on a normal day would have worried him but it was two days before their wedding and it just slipped his mind. He quickly dressed himself and then helped his son. A grumpy Yevgeny got handed a pop tart for breakfast and they were off to school.

Of course traffic had to be horrible that day. Some stupid idiot crashed into another stupid idiot and blocked the whole goddamn street, adding another 30 minutes to their travel time. Just when he yelled at another driver for being to slow again, Yevgeny suddenly started to look at him with big teary eyes.

“What’s wrong?”, Mickey asked confused. Had he been too loud or too stressed? Did that bother the kid? He usually laughed at his dad’s big mouth. What was it today? “Can I… Can I just skip school today?”, his son asked and a big fat tear ran down his cheek. “What? Why?”, he asked again. Fuck! What was wrong with the kid? “I just don’t wanna go!”, he replied defiantly. Mickey sighed. Great! A stubborn child on top of it all! “You know your mother will have my ass if I let you skip school! And yours probably, too!”, he replied trying to convince him.

“We don’t have to tell her! She will never know!”, Yevgeny said and started kicking the dashboard. “Stop that!”, Mickey snapped and got another sad look from his son with his way too big blue eyes. “Somethin’ happen at school? Was somebody mean to you?”, he asked and the frown on his son’s face already answered his question. “I hate the kids in my class!”, it burst out of Yevgeny and now the tears were spilling uncontrollably. 

Mickey had always felt uncomfortable, if somebody cried in front of him and he still had to push himself to comfort other people but this was his son in front of him. The kid cried at the most useless stuff. The other day he had cried because he hadn’t gotten pasta for dinner. Last week his favorite TV show got canceled and he cried defiantly for a solid hour. Ian had always been so much better with crying kids, especially with Yevgeny. Mickey just never knew what to do.

If he had cried like that as a child, Terry would have knocked his teeth out. Or rather had knocked his teeth out. As a matter of fact most of his baby teeth were knocked out by his monster of a father. Since that wasn’t really something he wanted for his own son. He pulled over to a little diner and stopped the car.

“Look! I know school is annoying sometimes and there will always be kids that piss you off but you gotta stand up to them or they will just continue to stamp around on you!”, he tried to soothe him. Yevgeny wiped away his tears and looked up at his dad. “But they’re so much taller than me!”, he protested. Mickey sighed. “Yeah, well you should get used to that! You have my genes so it’s highly unlikely that you’ll ever be taller than someone!”

Yevgeny started to sob again. Jesus! Father of the fucking year right there! “Hey… don’t… cry!”, Mickey stuttered but that didn’t help much. He unbuckled his seatbelt and turned around to his son, trying to pat his back. “You know how to throw a punch?”, he asked instead. Yevgeny looked up at him with tear stained eyes. “Mama said that beating someone up is bad!”, he replied quietly. Mickey rolled his eyes. Of course she had said that. “Yeah beating someone up is bad but you need to protect yourself! If you punch someone for protection it’s not bad!”

“I never hit someone!”, Yevgeny whispered, sniffing back his snot. “You wanna learn how to hit someone?”, Mickey asked. At least the kid had stopped crying. Yevgeny nodded in response. “Then it’s settled! You’re not goin’ to school today! But you can’t tell your mom! She’ll kill us both!”, Mickey said and his son’s face lit up again. He started the car and drove in a familiar direction. 

A few minutes later they arrived at the martial arts center where Mickey usually worked. Yevgeny got all excited when he realized they were entering his dad’s workplace. Ever since Mickey had been back in Yevgeny’s life, Svetlana had had something against his choice of career. He didn’t really know why but he assumed that she was afraid he could turn their son into a bully… like him. Or like he used to be. 

The kids at his old school had never messed with him but then again they had probably been too afraid to say anything at all out of fear that he might beat them up. In general, nobody had ever wanted to talk to him in school which resulted in him being alone for the greater part of his childhood. 

Yevgeny was different. Although, he was a big mouth like his dad sometimes, he was a much more sensitive kid and the irony of that wasn’t completely lost on Mickey, considering what kind of parents he had. Yevgeny had a lot of friends and Mickey was very happy about that but he was also concerned that his son might be too soft for this world. Showing him how to defend himself seemed to be a good solution to him. This surely wouldn’t turn him into a bully… would it?

He led his son to the upstairs office where Tory, his boss and co-owner of the center, was busy typing stuff into a computer. She looked up when she heard them enter and a smile stretched across her face. “I thought you were gettin’ married in a few days? Missed work already?”, she chirped and turned around to them. Mickey snorted. “I’d be here all week, if Ian let me… Nah, I wanna show this little guy here a few punches for self defense!”, he gesticulated at Yevgeny.

Tory chuckled. “And who is this handsome young man?”, she asked and leaned down to the little boy in front of her, who gazed shyly at her. “My son!”, Mickey answered and pushed Yevgeny gently forward. Tory’s eyes grew wide. “You have a son?! How come you never told me that?”, she asked indignantly. “You never asked…”, Mickey shrugged and Tory looked at him irritated. “You gotta answer me some serious questions later, my dear Mr. Milkovich!”

“There a course downstairs?”, he ignored her and tried to look past her on the schedule. She quickly shook her head. “No the boxing area’s empty right now! But you have to hurry! Next course’s goin’ to start in an hour!”, she replied. Mickey nodded in response. 

“Are you my dad’s boss?”, Yevgeny asked all of a sudden. Tory laughed and turned to him again. “Yes I am!”, she answered and smiled. “Can you throw a punch?”, the kid continued to ask and she nodded in response. “My dad’s goin’ to show me how to throw a punch, so I can kick the mean boys’ asses at school!”, he told her proudly. She snickered. “Well, then you’re in the right hands! I know for a fact that your dad’s a good ass-kicker! Bet he can show you a few tricks!”

Yevgeny smiled widely at that remark and looked up at his dad. Mickey raised his eyebrows and shrugged. “Yeah, yeah! Let’s get movin’, before the course starts!”, he said and navigated his son out of the office. 

 

After a few minutes of Mickey desperately trying to show his kid a few good punches and Yevgeny complaining about how his hand hurt, they sat down on the floor for a break. Mickey handed his son a bottle of water and the child gladly took it. Maybe he needed another approach. Maybe this whole fighting thing wasn’t for Yevgeny. Ian would always talk first before throwing a punch. Maybe he should try his way for a change. 

“Hey… What did those mean kids say to you?”, he asked when Yevgeny took a big gulp of the water bottle. His son turned away and stared at his feet silently. Mickey sighed. “Can you at least tell me who said something?”, he asked again, “Maybe I could have a talk with his parents…” Yevgeny shook his head eagerly. “No! Don’t! It’s only gettin’ worse!”, he replied anxiously.

“Okay kid… You gotta tell me somethin’ here! I let you skip school today but you can’t do that everyday… at some point you’ll have to face those assholes again and it certainly won’t get better if you do nothin’ about it!”, Mickey said, trying to sound encouragingly. “It was Brandon!”, Yevgeny whispered. Brandon? That rang a bell but Mickey couldn’t remember why. “And who is this Brandon?”, he asked. “We used to be best friends…”, his son continued and kept staring at his feet.

“So why is Brandon acting like an asshole, all of a sudden?”, Mickey asked, gazing at his son. Yevgeny’s face turned into a frown and he started kicking his feet at the floor. “I told him… that my dad is getting married!”, he replied angrily and Mickey’s heart dropped into his gut. He didn’t know that Yevgeny had been so vocal about him towards his friends. He had just always assumed that the kid was ashamed of him. Of course, there had been no indication of that but Mickey just couldn’t shake that feeling off of him.

“Said I was a freak and that it was disgusting… that two men shouldn’t get married…”, Yevgeny continued, shuffling his feet. Mickey snorted, wondering if it was appropriate to punch a nine year old in the fucking face. Big tears spilled from Yevgeny’s eyes again and he quickly wiped them away. Mickey sighed laying an arm around his son and pulling him close. “I’m sorry… This is not a fight you should have to fight…”

Yevgeny buried his face in his dad’s chest. “I told him to go fuck himself!”, he mumbled and Mickey slipped a laugh. “There you go… So you do know how to defend yourself!”, he chuckled, knowing very well that he probably shouldn’t encourage his son to tell people to go fuck themselves. “He told the other kids in my class and now everyone’s making fun of me…”, Yevgeny said. Mickey rubbed his forehead. He really wished Ian was here to have that conversation. Somehow, he felt that whatever advice he gave his son now would make things worse.

“You know when I was your age I would always pick on the kids in my class that were different…”, he started and Yevgeny looked up at him. “But why?”, he asked confused. “I don’t know… somehow it made me feel better about myself… point is, the more you give a reaction to someone the more he’ll tease you! You don’t have to defend me or my life choices in front of anyone! Just try an’ ignore them! They’ll stop eventually! It’s fucking boring to tease someone who doesn’t care!”, Mickey advised his son. “And if they don’t stop?”, Yevgeny asked again. “Then you’ll have my permission to beat the living shit out of ‘em!”, Mickey chuckled. His son frowned and stood up from the floor.

“Can I come here regularly?”, he asked with his big blue eyes. Mickey raised his eyebrows, standing up himself. “If you want to… probably have to talk to your mother first! You wanna join a class here?”, he asked. Yevgeny nodded. “I wanna be able to defend myself!”, he replied, “I wanna beat the shit out of Brandon!” Mickey laughed again. “Jesus, Fuck! Your mom’s gonna kill me if she hears how you talk after one week with me! Tell you what: Let me talk to your mom and we’ll see what we can do!”

Yevgeny grinned and hugged his father. “Thanks!”, he whispered and Mickey patted his back comfortingly. This wasn’t so bad, he had to admit. Slowly but surely he was getting better at this whole dad thing. He had to tell Ian about it! It was time for them to go anyways! They’d be home just in time for lunch!

\- - - - - - 

“Do you ever care to check your phone?”, Ian exclaimed, when they entered the apartment a little while later. Mickey scratched the back of his head. He had completely forgotten to tell Ian where he was. With Yevgeny there, sex probably wouldn’t save him this time. “Sorry… We were at the center and –“, he tried to explain but Ian just got more furious. “You were at the fuckin’ center? You promised me you wouldn’t work before the wedding! And why the fuck isn’t Yevi at school?” 

Yevgeny looked at him remorseful and he immediately felt sorry for the kid. He hadn’t had it easy the past few days and now all this yelling? “Let’s go to the fuckin’ bedroom to talk, alright?”, he suggested. Ian glared at him but followed the suggestion, leaving Yevgeny in the living room with some cartoons on TV.

“So?”, Ian asked impatiently after Mickey had closed the door behind them. “The kids at school were picking on him because he told them that we’d get married!”, Mickey explained and Ian’s face turned from angry to sad. “Fuck!”, he mumbled and sat down on their bed. “I just wanted to show him how to defend himself at the center…”, Mickey continued. Ian frowned at him. “You told him he should beat up the other kids?”, he asked disbelievingly. Mickey tilted his head. “No, I told him he should ignore that bullshit! I just wanted him to be able to defend himself, if they ever decide that makin’ fun of him wasn’t enough!”, he replied irritated. 

Ian looked at him thoughtfully for a moment. “You know, that was actually really good advice!”, he said and stood up again. “Please don’t sound so surprised!”, Mickey complained and Ian chuckled in return. “No, I’m really impressed!”, he said and walked towards him. “Uh… shut up!”, Mickey snapped. Ian cupped his face with his hands and forced him to look up at him. “However, you should really learn how to answer your fuckin’ phone for a change!”, Ian whispered and pressed their lips together. 

He ran one hand down Mickey’s pants while he deepened the kiss. Mickey pulled back when he realized what Ian was up to. “Dude, the kid’s next door!”, he argued to which Ian only rolled his eyes. “Didn’t bother you last night! Or the day before!”, he simply replied. Mickey flipped him off and went back to the living room. If his son was there, why not spend some time with him?


	7. Thursday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thursday does not go as expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy! :)

On Thursday Mickey got woken up by the doorbell because of fucking course he wasn’t allowed to sleep until his alarm clock would ring one day before the wedding. He sat up grumpily, running a hand over his face and looked at his phone. 7.30 am. This better be important! Who the fuck would ring the bell at 7.30 am in the goddamn morning?

He put on some sweats lying on the floor and almost stumbled over his feet. Great! Ian’s giraffe-limb sweatpants. Whatever. They’d do for whoever was at the door. Mickey sincerely hoped that someone had died because he couldn’t think of any other good reason to be woken up so early in the morning. He looked over at Ian who still seemed to sleep. A rare sight these days with Ian usually being up at the ass crack of dawn to stir some shit up.

He left the bedroom and entered the hallway. His son looked at him sleepily from the couch when he passed the living room to get to the door. He opened it without looking through the peephole because it didn’t matter who was behind it, they better had a damn good excuse. Startled he looked into the face of Wilkins, his parole officer who seemed to be not too pleased to have to have waited so long. 

Quickly fear spread in his gut and the urge to run away rose in him. Of course he knew that that would not be a solution but what would he even be running from? He hadn’t stepped out of line once on his parole. He had passed every drug test (sometimes he had wondered how but still) and didn’t violate his parole once in the almost three years he had been out of prison now. Whatever his PO could want from him right now it couldn’t be bad. Could it? For whatever reason he always felt guilty when a police officer or his PO stood in front of him. Probably an old habit. He needed to remind himself more often that he was an upstanding citizen now. No more illegal bullshit, right? 

His hands were sweaty and it took him a second to greet the man in front of him. “Milkovich! Awake yet?”, Wilkins asked with a smirk. He was holding an envelope in his hands that he played with while he looked at Mickey firmly. “What do you want? Did I fuck something up?”, Mickey replied not in the mood for small talk. Wilkins chuckled and held out the envelope to Mickey.

Mickey took it still confused and eyed it warily. “What’s this?”, he asked and looked up at his PO again. Wilkins smirked again. God how he would have loved to punch that motherfucker’s face but he had to behave. Upstanding citizen and all that. “Early wedding present!”, Wilkins replied, “Wanted to bring it by in person since I still can’t believe that a Milkovich is behaving so well on parole.” Mickey frowned looking down at the envelope again and trying to fumble it open. This didn’t really look like a wedding card but more like formal papers. Was the guy messing with him?

After he had managed to take the papers out, he couldn’t believe his eyes. “What the fuck?”, he mumbled staring at the first page. “I thought you’d say that!”, Wilkins laughed, “State of Illinois decided to lift your parole early. Hope it’s a good present! I ain’t got anything else!” Mickey looked at him again disbelievingly. “You serious?”, he asked still not able to grasp what he was holding in his hands. Wilkins nodded. “Did you do this?”, he asked again and this time Wilkins shook his head. “Nope that’s all thanks to the understaffed state of Illinois and the lovely Judge Peterson! I’m just the messenger. But I think I can put you up in my resumée now since I’m the first PO to re-socialize a Milkovich!”

Mickey shook his head still not believing a word his PO had just said. A tiny hand suddenly wrapped around his leg. Yevgeny looked up at Wilkins curiously with big blue eyes. “And who are you little man?”, Wilkins asked, bending down to be on eye level with Mickey’s son. “My name is Yevgeny and this is my Papa!”, Yevgeny answered politely, “Who are you?” Wilkins laughed again. “I’m your dad’s parole officer… or was your dad’s parole officer. As of now your Papa here is a free man!”

Yevgeny looked at his dad and squeezed his leg. Mickey startled as if he was woken up from a dream. “You can be happy, you know? This is a good thing, Milkovich!”, Wilkins suggested smiling at Mickey again. Mickey still stared at the paper in his hand. This was it! This was the confirmation of his freedom! His way out! He had done it! He had walked the line and now he was a free man. Able to leave the state or the country whenever he wanted. Pursue whatever he wanted. This. Was. It.

He took another deep breath before looking at Wilkins again. “Thanks, man!”, he said with a choked voice and stretched out a hand. Wilkins gladly took it, still smiling widely. “My pleasure! Stay outta trouble!”, he replied and walked away. Mickey closed the door behind him and looked at the paper again. 

“That man was weird!”, Yevgeny suddenly said, pulling him from his thoughts. “Yeah!”, Mickey agreed chuckling. He felt like his knees would give in so he slowly sat down on the floor, a wide smile playing on his lips. “What did he mean ‘you’re a free man’?”, Yevgeny asked. Mickey ran a hand over his face again, still smiling, still not sure if he was even awake or if it all had just been a dream. “I’m a free man!”, he mumbled, looking up at his son, “I am free!”

\- - - - - - 

After making breakfast and driving Yevgeny to school, Mickey had decided to share the good news with his soon-to-be husband since it was way past ten and he must’ve slept enough. He stomped out his cigarette and made his way to the bedroom again, the paper in his hand that confirmed his parole was lifted. 

Ian still hadn’t moved. He just lay on his side, facing the window, the blanket pulled up to his face. Mickey crawled on their bed and kissed his shoulder. “Look! I already got an early wedding gift from my PO!”, he said happily, waving the paper in front of Ian’s face. Ian stared blankly out the window. 

“Ian?”, Mickey asked carefully, “Are you alright?” But he already knew the answer. And he cursed himself for not seeing the signs. In retrospect there were so many of them but of course he had overlooked them all. Of course his mind had been occupied with all the wedding bullshit and his sister’s baby and now Ian had a low. 

There were tears shining in Ian’s eyes. Mickey sighed heavily, blinking away his own tears, trying to swallow the big lump in his throat. He laid a hand on Ian’s arm and ran through Ian’s red hair with the other, placing a soft kiss on his shoulder again. “I’m sorry!”, Mickey whispered, “I’m sorry I didn’t see it comin’!” Tears started to spill from Ian’s eyes and he buried his face in the pillow. “I’m calling your doctor… let her know!”, Mickey said quietly before he kissed Ian’s shoulder again and walked out of the bedroom. 

His heart ached with every movement. He knew what this meant. He knew what he had to do. Mickey picked up his phone from the counter and quickly called Ian’s psychiatrist. He had a ton of shit to do now but this had to be done first. Ian always came first.

\- - - - - -

After a long conversation with Ian’s psychiatrist Mickey felt exhausted. He needed to bring Ian in. Today if possible. He also needed to call Ian’s family to let them know what was happening, Kev to call off the wedding party and Town Hall to call off the wedding. 

Mickey felt like his heart broke into tiny little pieces just thinking about it all. Thinking about how Ian suffered because he had ignored the signs of his mania. If he had seen it sooner they could’ve done something about it. If he had just paid more attention. It was his job as his future husband to look out for those things. How was he ever supposed to take care of him if it already started like that? 

Mickey let his head fall into his hands. It was all so fucked up. Everything was ready. They would just have to be there tomorrow. But in Ian’s condition they couldn’t do it. They couldn’t get married. The realization of that hit him harder than he’d like to admit. Mickey had never wanted the big party and celebration. He never liked the attention. But seeing Ian so happily engaging in planning and organizing the wedding had made him look forward to it. He had actually been excited to get married tomorrow. But now it had just all turned into shit. As always.

It was like whenever they were truly happy together destiny decided they should be punished. Like they weren’t allowed to be prolonged happy. Like happily ever after wasn’t in store for them. 

He stared at his phone and a tear slipped his eyes. Great, now he was crying over the goddamn wedding. What a pussy he was. He wiped away the tears angrily and dialed Fiona’s number. He’d better get started before he had to pick up his son from school again.

\- - - - - - 

Getting Ian ready when he was in a state like this was always the worst part. He had called everybody and made sure that they were in the picture: No wedding tomorrow and not anytime soon. He took a deep breath before he entered their bedroom again. Fiona and Lip would be there soon, so he at least wanted Ian to be dressed by then.

Ian still lay on his side, facing the window. Mickey quickly looked for some fresh clothes in the drawer and laid them beside Ian. His fiancée just pulled up his knees to his chest when Mickey turned to face him. 

“We gotta get you ready, Ian. Your doctor said you should come in as soon as possible.”, he said carefully but Ian just pulled the blanket over his face. Quiet sniffling noises came from under the blanket and Mickey knew he was crying again. “Come on, man!”, Mickey tried to convince him. He touched Ian’s shoulder but Ian pulled away from him. “Leave me alone!”, Ian whispered so Mickey could barely hear him. “Ian, you know the drill! We have to get you to your doctor so you can get better!”, Mickey said as soft as he could. He pulled away the blanket and saw Ian’s tear stained face. 

Mickey wanted to scream. He wanted to blame himself for being so stupid but of course that wouldn’t change the situation they were in. “Let me help you!”, he said quietly and pulled Ian up to sit. Ian immediately lurched forward. He was weak. Weaker than last time. Exhausted probably. Mickey cupped his face and tried to look him in the eyes but Ian wasn’t focusing. He just stared blankly at his feet. Big tears still streaming down his face. 

Mickey took the t-shirt he had laid aside and pulled it over Ian’s head. Putting one arm in, then the other while Ian neither offered resistance, nor helped. He was about to put on Ian’s socks when Ian suddenly spoke. “Maybe it’s better this way…”, he said quietly with a croaky voice. Mickey looked up at him. “Waddaya mean?”, he asked confused, reaching for Ian’s pants. Ian sighed long, as if it took too much of him to speak. “The wedding… I heard you called it off.”

Mickey bit his bottom lip. He hadn’t planned on telling Ian like that. He had wanted to wait until he was better or at least until he had seen his doctor. “I just thought… you know, you won’t be able to do it so I had to call it off.”, Mickey answered apologetically. Ian chuckled weakly. “I know… it’s fate.”, he whispered, “but you’ll be much better off without me… Thank god we didn’t make that mistake. Now you’re free… free to go.” 

Mickey frowned at the man in front of him. What the fuck was wrong with him? “Shut the fuck up!”, Mickey scolded him, “We will get married eventually! It just won’t be tomorrow, alright? You’ll get your shit together and then we’ll get hitched! ‘s as easy as that!” Ian chuckled again without any happiness attached to it but he didn’t say anything in return. “Now can you stand up so I can pull up your pants?”

\- - - - - - 

The visit at Ian’s psychiatrist had gone smoother than Mickey had anticipated. It turned out that Ian had forgotten his meds while planning the wedding. Mickey wasn’t sure if he had actually forgotten or if he had just not wanted to take them but he kept quiet. He didn’t want to upset him. These things had happened before and they always ended in a fight.

Debbie had offered to take care of Yevgeny while Fiona, Lip and Mickey did the usual in these occasions. Taking turns in taking care of Ian. Even though Mickey felt like he could handle it alone he was glad that Ian’s siblings were there to help him out. They might have not always gotten along but these days they certainly agreed on one thing: Help Ian get better. And that was the most important thing for Mickey.

After they had brought Ian back to bed and Fiona and Lip had said their goodbyes, Mickey collapsed on the couch. He sighed exhaustedly to the empty living room and let his head fall back. If he had just seen the signs he could have prevented this whole mess… shoulda coulda woulda. He was pulled out of his thoughts by the doorbell. He wasn’t really in the mood to answer the door but he got up anyway. What else could he do today?

He opened the door and got greeted by his mother’s worried look but also her familiar warm smile. “Mickey.”, she smiled and fell around his neck. He returned the warm embrace without saying anything. She gently stroke his back and for whatever reason he felt like he was a little boy again that got comforted by his mother. 

When they pulled apart she cupped his face lovingly and smiled. “How’s Ian?”, she asked carefully. “Sleeping.”, Mickey replied and closed the door behind them. They walked to the living room and sat down on the couch. “I’m so sorry, sweety!”, Anastasia said and grabbed Mickey’s hand, “I know you were looking forward to the wedding.” Mickey just nodded silently, staring down at their entangled hands.

“Should I call Jerry to get him up here? See if he can help Ian?”, Anastasia asked gingerly. Mickey shook his head. “Nah, we’ve already figured shit out with his doc… The idiot just needs to take his meds and rest!”, he replied still avoiding eye contact. Anastasia nodded and began stroking the back of his hand. 

Her eyes wandered around the room and landed on Mickey’s parole papers on the coffee table. Curiously she leaned forward. “Wait.. are these?”, she asked, a wide smile stretching on her lips. Mickey smirked weakly. He had forgotten all about it. And he had been in no mood of celebrating since he found out about Ian. What good was his freedom when he couldn’t enjoy it with the person he loved the most? 

“Yeah, my parole got lifted this morning…”, he said quietly and his mother looked at him happily. “This is so great!”, Anastasia cheered and kissed his cheek, “Congratulations, sweety! You’re a free man now!” Mickey nodded again, scratching the back of his head. “Looks like it.”, he replied smiling sadly. Anastasia squeezed his hand encouragingly. “That’s something to celebrate, you know?”, she said, leaning back against the couch again, “Do you already know where you wanna go first?” 

Mickey frowned. “Where I wanna go? Why? Am I leaving?”, he asked confused. Anastasia chuckled. “Yeah, now that your parole is lifted you can cross state lines again… You could go on vacation, see some other places, maybe? Or have a honeymoon after you tied the knot? Where do you wanna go, sweety? What places do you wanna see?”, she replied joyful. 

Mickey stared at the ceiling, thinking. Ian had sometimes talked about traveling once his parole was over but he had never really spent too much thought about it. If he was being honest he had never even really believed he would make it past his parole. Even in that moment he feared it could all be a dream. He didn’t trust the new found freedom yet. 

“I have no idea…”, he mumbled. “Jerry and I spent our honeymoon in the Caribbean.”, Anastasia began to reminisce, “We swam with pigs in the beautiful blue sea! It was an amazing honeymoon! Maybe you two would like to go?” Mickey sighed. “I don’t… really swim.”, he replied thoughtfully. Anastasia turned to look at him. “Oh… okay, well we’ll find something for you two! Maybe you’d like to go hiking or something in Alaska or go see California maybe?”

Mickey didn’t know why his mother asked him so many questions about travel destinations but he assumed it was to take his mind off of the fact that he wasn’t going to marry Ian tomorrow or anytime soon. He couldn’t even really think about where he’d want to go because it didn’t matter until Ian was better. Nothing mattered until Ian was better. 

He also didn’t know how they would proceed then. Would they stick to the initial wedding and get married the way they had planned it just a few weeks later? Or should they just go to town hall and get hitched the way Mickey had always wanted it. He probably couldn’t do that to Ian, though. He needed his family there. Even though Mickey didn’t care, Ian very much did. Maybe he could think of something that satisfied them both. Something that Ian wouldn’t have to plan.


	8. Seal the Deal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mickey and Ian are on their way to their first vacation together.

“Got my toothbrush?”  
“Yup!”  
“Sunscreen?”  
“Yup!”  
“Razor?”  
“Uh… yup!”  
“Did we forget anything?”  
“Like what?”  
“Like something essential?”  
“Got your phone charger? You ain’t gettin’ mine if you forgot yours!”  
“Yup! Packed it earlier.”  
“Got your meds?”  
“Yeah, in the backpack.”  
“Can’t think of anything else…”  
“Swim trunks!”  
“Tell me again why I need swim trunks!”  
“Because you’ll get in the water with me!”  
“Is that so…”  
“Yeah! Why else would we go to Cuba if you’re not goin’ in the water? Besides Havanna has gay friendly beaches!”, Ian wiggled his eyebrows as if that could convince Mickey. The latter rolled his eyes at the dork of a redhead in front of him. “Whatever… I’ll probably just get drunk at the beach anyway.”, he replied before throwing two pair of swim trunks in the open suitcase on their bed, “Now hurry, Gallagher! Johnny will soon be here to get us to the airport!” 

Ian grinned sillily and closed their suitcase. “I still don’t get why we need to get goin’ already. Our flight is in four hours. I don’t think we need to be there that early.”, he remarked pensively. “Did you ever fly before?”, Mickey asked with raised eyebrows. Ian shook his head. “Then we’ll be there early so we don’t miss our flight and miss our fuckin’ vacation that my mom paid a whole fuckin’ lot for.”, Mickey replied and carried the suitcase to the hallway. 

“Isn’t it weird that we go on our honeymoon before we actually get married…?”, Ian asked, following his fiancée to the hallway. “We’ll get married soon enough.”, Mickey said, checking his phone for any missed calls. “Yeah… but I mean it would be much more romantic if we were married already. It’s also kinda strange that your mom paid for the trip before she even knew that your parole was lifted…”, Ian replied, looking through his backpack. 

“Don’t think too much about it! Just enjoy the trip!”, Mickey said, putting his phone back in his pocket. Ian threw his backpack on the suitcase and grabbed his man by the hips. “Our first vacation!”, he smiled happily, pulling Mickey close. Mickey returned the smile and kissed Ian tenderly. Ian’s hands wandered down his fiancé's body but before they could go any further they got interrupted by Mickey’s phone buzzing in his pocket. Mickey took it out again to check who it was. “Johnny… Let’s go!”

\- - - - - - 

John waited outside the apartment building and greeted the happy couple with a wide smile. “Ready for Cuba?”, he grinned and hugged both Mickey and Ian before he helped them put their luggage in the trunk. “Can’t wait!”, Ian said and walked around the car to get to the passenger seat. 

As soon as the car door closed Mickey turned to John, giving him a meaningful look. John simply nodded and nudged his arm. “All set! You ready?”, he asked cheerily. Mickey took a deep breath before he answered. He was starting to get seriously nervous. “Yeah… As ready as one can be.”, he replied, trying to keep a straight face. “What? Havin’ second thoughts, now?”, John asked, jokingly. “Nah man… ‘s all good! Let’s go!”, Mickey said and opened the car door to climb in the back seat. 

He could really use a cigarette now. With all the packing and getting ready in the morning he totally forgot to smoke. Now. Of all times. He looked out the window when John started the engine and only listened with half an ear when John and Ian started talking about all the things you could do in Cuba. Mickey’s thoughts were far away and his heart began to pound faster with every mile they came closer to their destination. Their first stop on their way to Cuba.

It had been six weeks since Ian’s low. Six weeks since he had to call off their wedding. Ian had felt bad for a long time afterwards, trying to make it up to Mickey or finding another date for their wedding but Mickey had refused to be pinned down to anything. He didn’t want this to happen again. He didn’t want Ian to plan another wedding that he had to call off. It was Mickey’s turn. All he hoped for now was that Ian wouldn’t be pissed at him. He checked his phone again for the time. 12.36 pm. Another 24 minutes until he would find out. He took another deep breath and leaned back. He might as well try to relax a bit.

\- - - - - - 

“You should really go see Santa Maria del Mar! It’s beautiful! Lots of nice little restaurants and bars!”, John raved enthusiastically, clearly reliving his own trip to Cuba. Ian smiled at him. “I’ll put it on the list!”, he said and looked out the window again. John took a strange road to the airport. O’Hare was in the north-west of Chicago but they only drove further north. Maybe John knew a way to bypass the traffic in the city?

Ian kept looking outside at all the people passing by. They stopped at a red light. They were close to the courthouse, where they should have gotten married six weeks ago. Ian sighed thinking about it. He felt so much remorse for not taking his pills. It was his fault that they hadn’t gotten married as planned. If he had just been more careful. More considerate. But he couldn’t change it now, could he? All he could do was make Mickey happy with this vacation, hoping that Mickey would agree to set a date and marry him when they got back. That means, if he still wanted to.

They drove on and John suddenly took an odd turn, parking his car in front of the courthouse. Confused Ian looked over at John who just kept smiling at him. “What the hell…?”, Ian mumbled when he heard Mickey getting out of the car. Ian turned around to see his fiancée standing on his side, opening the door. “Mick? What the fuck? I thought we should get goin’?”, Ian asked still baffled. “There’s something we have to do first…”, Mickey replied with a shy smile. 

Ian got out of the car and looked at his fiancée. “What… what do we… ?”, he stuttered. That’s when he noticed Lip and Fiona, standing a few feet away in front of the tall building. Debbie with her two kids and her boyfriend. Carl and his girl, Liam, Kev, V and their twins. Sue and a couple of other colleagues. Anastasia and her family. Mandy and her little girl. Even Svetlana and Yevgeny were there. 

Slowly it dawned on Ian what this was all about. “Did you…?”, he began, looking back his boyfriend, “Did you plan all this?” Mickey smiled that hundred watt smile of his. “Yeah… that okay?”, he asked insecurely. Ian swallowed, looking around again. Seeing all the people he loved. And the person he loved the most in front of him. “I…”, he smiled and slowly shook his head, “I don’t know what to say…” Mickey tilted his head, taking Ian’s hand in his. “Just say yes and we’ll seal the deal!”, he grinned, staring down at their hands shyly before looking up at Ian again, “If you still want to…” It didn’t take a second for Ian to make up his mind. He cupped Mickey’s face and kissed him gingerly. “How could I not want this?”, he asked smiling widely.

“Hey save that for after the ceremony!”, Cat yelled from behind them. Mickey and Ian simultaneously flipped her off for which she burst into laughter. Lip approached them and nudged Ian’s arm. “Ready to do this?”, he asked in all sincerity. Ian smiled and nodded. “Alright then, let’s go inside before you miss your second wedding!”

\- - - - - - 

Mickey was nervous. Nervous for no reason at all. He would marry the man of his dreams in ten minutes. There was nothing to be nervous about. Yet his heart couldn’t stop pounding in his chest and he couldn’t seem to tie his tie. “Come on, let me do it!”, Anastasia offered and began to untangle her son’s tie to tie it anew. They stood in a small private bathroom the staff of the courthouse so kindly offered them so each man could get ready separately. “I was nervous, too, before my wedding, you know? Just know that it’ll pass as soon as you see your man.”

Mickey took a deep breath when his mom was done tying and looked at himself in the mirror. There was a knock at the door and John and Cat slipped in. “You ready? Everybody’s waitin’.”, John asked before Mickey turned around to face them. “Wow bro! Lookin’ sharp! Just let me do your hair real quick!”, Cat cheered and dug her fingers in Mickey’s hair. “That’s enough bitch! Don’t make me look like Elvis please!”, Mickey shook her off. She chuckled and took a step back.

The siblings and his mom looked him up and down. “You’re so handsome!”, Anastasia remarked with tears in her eyes. “Aaw don’t cry Ana or I will cry and then Mickey will cry, too!”, Cat whined theatrically. “Shut up! I’m not gonna cry!”, Mickey frowned at her and she laughed again. Anastasia took a step forward and hugged him tightly. “I’m so proud of you, baby!”, she whispered in his ear in Ukrainian and kissed his cheek before she left the tiny bathroom. 

“Alright now… As your best man I have to ask: Do you really wanna do this?”, John asked seriously. Mickey frowned again. “Of course I do!”, he replied which earned him a smile from the siblings. “Okay then… showtime!”

\- - - - - - 

“You truly look amazing Ian!”, Fiona admired her little brother. He grinned back at her shyly. “I still can’t believe he planned this all by himself!”, Ian replied running his hands through his hair. “He’s full of surprises that Milkovich!”, Lip remarked and chuckled slightly. “Yeah, he is!”, Ian agreed fondly. 

His heart seemed to want to jump out of his chest. Only ten minutes left. Soon he would be married to the love of his life. The man he fell in love with when he was only a boy. More than ten years had passed since it all began. “It’s time for us I guess!”, Ian said and he truly felt it. It was time for them to tie the knot. ‘To seal the deal’ as Mickey loved to say. 

“Who would’ve thought this day would come?”, Fiona chuckled and ran her hands over her younger brother’s shoulders comfortingly. “You can still run, you know?”, Lip said jokingly, “Car’s parked out back! Fiona could distract everyone and we could run!” Ian laughed, nudging his brother’s arm. “Yeah, you’d like that, right?”, he asked playfully. Lip shrugged. “Whatever makes you happy, man! You know that!”, he replied and looked up in his brother’s eyes, “Ready to do this?”

“Ready for the past ten years!”, Ian replied happily. “Alright then. Let’s go!”

\- - - - - -

Mickey didn’t listen to much of what the judge said. All he could do was look at Ian. His mum had been right. As soon as he had seen Ian standing there all his nervousness had been gone. From the moment they both stood across from each other in front of the judge that would marry them he couldn’t focus on anything else but Ian. It was like they were all alone in the room. Everything and everyone else behind them was just muffled noise. 

“Do you Ian Clayton Gallagher take Mikahilo Alexandr Milkovich to be your lawfully wedded husband and do you promise to be a loving, faithful and devoted husband in plenty and in want, in joy and in sorrow, in sickness and in health, so long as you both shall live?”, the judge asked and Mickey’s heart seemed to stop for a second. “I do!”, Ian replied without hesitance. He took the ring Lip gave him and slipped it on Mickey’s ring finger.

The judge turned then to Mickey and he had to swallow hard. Now or never, he thought. “And do you Mikahilo Alexandr Milkovich take Ian Clayton Gallagher to be your lawfully wedded husband and do you promise to be a loving, faithful and devoted husband in plenty and in want, in joy and in sorrow, in sickness and in health, so long as you both shall live?” Mickey wasn’t sure if he could even find the voice to speak right now. His eyes wandered to Ian who looked back at him expectantly. It was all it took to make him reply: “I do!” John handed him the ring and with shaking hands he slipped the ring on Ian’s ring finger. 

They both smiled shyly at each other before the judge continued: “By the power vested in me and by the state of Illinois I declare you husband and husband. Congratulations! You may kiss.” As soon as Ian leaned down and their lips touched the room exploded into cheer and applause but the happy couple didn’t hear any of it. There was no one else but them right now. They had finally done it and they couldn’t be happier. When they broke the kiss they kept staring at each other, smiling and full of joy. This was their happily ever after and they had finally gotten it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe this story is done! I'm kinda sad. It was a lot of fun!  
> I hope you guys enjoyed the trip! Let me know if you want me to continue writing in this universe!   
> I'm gonna finish HIWTHI soon as well... just a few more chapters and it's a wrap! 
> 
> Thanks so much for reading :)


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